Infestation
by shadowno
Summary: It started as a Halloween short story, but after being requested, i've decided to lengthen it. Please read and review. Thank you for reading.
1. Original story

Final Fantasy VII

Infestation

Cloud lay with his head against the wall, his eyes were close, resting, but he was far from asleep. Across from him, Vincent sat, wide awake. The other survivors were upstairs, trying to rest. The boarded up house was all the kept them safe from the creatures. It had all started with Hojo. His experimentations with MAKO had lead to his discover of a new materia. The resurrect materia was revolutionary, in a sense it was a combination of the Final Attack and the Life materia. But something happened. Life materia had a limit, it couldn't resurrect those who had died to violently. Resurrect didn't have this limit, which was the downfall. It started with the one who had feel from the Shinra building. He was resurrected, but he came back different. His mind had warped, he had become an animal. He soon broke out of the containment area, killing others off violently, destroying their minds and soon after, they resurrected and joined the ranks. Now the city was crawling with them. A small group of survivors were currently held up in the small house in the sector 8 slums. Outside, the creatures were everywhere. All they could hope for was to hold up as long as possible. The only alleged flaw by the Shinra corporation was the limited uses for the materia. It wore out faster than any other materia, which would hopefully lead to the death of the creatures.

When the outbreak had began, Cloud had lead 10 others to safety. He watched terrified as he saw friends fall. Over time, they had gained more. As of now, 20 people were held up in the small house owned by Elmyra Gainsborough. He could hear the moans of the creatures, sounding sad, but he knew the truth. Behind those moans were vicious predators. Cloud was surprised when a loud bang came from the door. They were back, and trying to break into the house again. He jumped to his feet, Vincent was already up, his weapon in his hand. The creatures beat against the door over and over. That's when the voice came from the stairs.

"Spikey, they've surround us."

Cloud didn't like the sound of urgency in Barret's voice. He turned to the stairs.

"Find a way out of here."

"Cloud!" Vincent yelled out. Cloud turned to see Vincent, a hand that had broken through have captured him. It was pulling him towards the window. Cloud ran to it, cutting the arm off in one fell swoop of the buster sword. He turned back to the door just in time to see it burst open. The creatures poured into the house, rushing Cloud and Vincent. Cloud barely had time to scream.


	2. Authors note

Infestation

Author's Note

Hello, and thank you for reading Infestation. I will be uploading this with the first chapter that will hopefully be the first of many. I've been told that I should continue this story, and with my fading popularity, I see no reason to refuse to do so. I will me slightly modifying the story, for I never intended to make it into a full story. Special thanks go to Silver Spirit 101 and Prisonerksc2-303. Thank you for your reviews and your recommendations. I hope that this work pleases you. As for any other readers, I thank you for taking your time to read this, and also, any reviews, comments, questions, or criticism is greatly welcomed. As for flamers, I'll except you too. Flames are for cooking marshmallows. Now, I know I must be boring you by now, so I will get to it. I should warn you however, that I've chosen to restart the story. Thank you for reading.


	3. Chapter 1

Final Fantasy VII

Infestation

Chapter 1

It had all started out so innocent, Shinra wasn't known for being the most giving company, but their latest contribution to the city had been revolutionary. They had been in materia distribution for the longest time, and they had made life easier. Their cure and life materia were hugely helpful, whether you were a mother, trying to take care of your adventurous children, or a SOLDIER, risking your life daily to protect others. But life and cure went only so far. One day, Hojo, the head of Shinra's science department began working on a more powerful materia Resurrect was only in it's developmental stages when the Shinra building was attacked by the terrorist organization, Avalanche. During the attack, Hojo was shot in the chest by a stray bullet. They rushed him to the hospital, but they were too late, Hojo's heart stopped as they worked to save his life. They called his death, but they were wrong. Hojo had been testing his invention, and soon after his heart stopped, he was revived. The word spread throughout Midgar. An automatic revival materia. It would save so many lives. Everyone wanted one, and so Shinra released it, beginning mass production. That was where they had gone wrong. They didn't notice that where life materia had caps, had the inability to fix some things, resurrect didn't have the same limits. Some times... they're not meant to come back.

He was an unhappy man, a Shinra employee. That previous day, his wife had left him. She had taken the children with her. So while his fellow employees were enjoying their lunch break, the man had climbed to the top of the Shinra building. Once on the roof, he looked down upon the city. The crowds all seemed so happy. No one would miss a single man? He lept from the top of the building, crashing through the glass roof of the lobby below. He was all but flattened, his head smashed in by the force of the fall. They placed him in the janitors office while the morgue came to pick him up. No one had thought of checking him for the materia He himself had forgotten to remove it before he had jumped. The janitor returned to his office with his mop and bucket, having had been called to clean up the mess that the jumper had made. The human mind is a very complicated thing, once destroyed, it can never be rebuilt. It can never be replicated. The janitor had his back turned, changing from his uniform, when the regurgitation was complete. Having been revived however, his brain remained in pieces. This made him as a mindless animal. He attacked the janitor while he had his back turned, he never stood a chance. Of course, by now the majority of the city had purchased the materia. The mindless animals always seemed to attack the brain, as if they new that this would turn their victims into one of them.

The epidemic quickly washed of Midgar like a flood. Thousands were slaughtered at first. SOLDER fought back, but were great outnumbered. The Shinra personal guard was all but useless. Eventually all that was left was small bands of people that managed to barricade themselves in safe places. This is the story of the one that I was part of.


	4. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Deep in the Sector 7 Slums, the streets were filled with the creatures created as a result to Shinra's stupidity. Along the crowded streets, stood a small building. The bar, known around Midgar as Seventh Heaven, was the base for the terrorist group known as Avalanche. Kept up in it right now, were Cloud, the leader, along with some of the group. Right now, Cloud sat at the bar, next to Tifa. Down stairs Biggs, Wedge and Barret were trying to get some rest. They took turns keeping watch, making sure that the bar remained secure. Cloud was lost in thought, were the others OK? Jesse, Vincent, Cid, Yuffie and Red XII were out on a mission when the outbreak occurred. Reeve was probably in the Shinra building. Things didn't look good there, but there was still hope. They had to find them, they had to see if they were OK.

"CLOUD!" Tifa finally yelled.

Cloud had been so lost in his thought, that he hadn't heard what she had been saying. He looked at her, alarmed at the tone of her voice.

"Listen." she said, she sounded kind of scared.

"Cloud listened to the silence, that's when he heard it. Gunfire. It was coming from outside. " Tifa, go wake the others." He said, running up the stairs as she started towards the hidden elevator. He took the stairs two at a time, the stairs groaned with each step. They really should of repaired them when they had the chance. He got to the window on the front side of the building, and looked out. He was amazed to see four men in suits held up in a building down the street. Then he recognized them. The turks, it was actually Tseng, Reno, Rude, and Elena that were shooting the creatures, trying to desperately drive them back. He heard footsteps bounding up the stairs behind him.

"What's going on!" Barret asked, looking out the window.

"It's the turks." Cloud said, pointing in the direction. "Looks like they're in a bind."

"Good, serves them right." Barret said. Tifa arrived at the door way.

"If we can save them, it'd make things easier on us." She said.

"Right." Cloud agreed. "If we can get them in here, they'd be useful. I hate Shinra, but in these circumstances, every man is a blessing."

"Whatever, but I'm not risking my life and the life of my men for them."

"Fine, I'll do it myself." Cloud said, angrily.

"No you won't." Tifa said. "Barret, we can't stay here forever. We need every man we can get for when we move."

Barret glared at them, but finally gave in. "Fine, but we better get to them soon, or else there'll be no one fucking left to help." He stuck his arm out the window and started firing his gun into the crowd below. "Over here!" He called, getting the turks attention. Cloud and Tifa ran down the stairs.

"What's going on?" Biggs asked as they passed him and Wedge. Cloud began unbarricading the door, and looked at Tifa.

"Close the door after I go out. Be ready to get it open and close it as soon as we're inside." He told her, pulling his buster sword from his back.

Tifa kissed him on the cheek. "Just come back safe Cloud."

Cloud nodded, and turned toward the door, wrenching it open. He flung himself towards the crowd.

==##==

A/N (sorry it's so short, I'll try to make it longer in the future.)


	5. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Cloud was surprised by how fast the animalistic creatures swarmed around him. He cut through them with surprising ease, carving his way to the building he had seen the turks enter. He could still here gun fire, but he wasn't sure whether it was Barret's cover fire or the Turks. He quickly wrenched to the side as a hand grabbed his shoulder roughly, and spun, holding the sword horizontally. His razor sharp buster sword easily went through them. Finally, after what seemed like forever, he reached the building. The door was open, he quickly battled his way into it, slamming and locking the door. He turned toward the room, finding himself face to face with a group of the creatures. He quickly handled them. As he approached the stairs, he heard a gun cock.

"Don't shoot." Cloud called out, stepping onto the first stair.

"Strife?" A voice responded.

"Yeah, the building is secured, you can come down."

A man with long black hair appeared at the top of the stairs, Cloud immediately recognized him as Tseng, the leader of the Turks.

"What are you doing here?" Cloud asked him.

"Just trying to survive." Tseng said. "The whole city is filled with those things."

"Listen, we have to get out of the city. The more men..."

"And women!" Came Elena's annoyed voice from somewhere upstairs.

"Get to the point Strife." Tseng said.

"I think you should come with us. The more people that are with us the safer it is.

Tseng laughed. "There is millions of those things out there."

Reno appeared next to him.

"We have orders to..." Reno began

"Reno!" Tseng interrupted.

Cloud tightened his grip on his buster sword. He sensed something was up.

"Strife, seeing as I don't see any other options, I'm going to accept your offer temporarily." Tseng said.

Cloud stared at the two men, uncertain about whether or not to trust him. His thinking was cut short as the door burst open behind him. He turned just as the first creature reached him. The gun shot rang out, the bullet soared just over Cloud's shoulder and entered the creatures head. Cloud began backing up the stares, swinging his sword at anything that got too near. They were piling into the building. Tseng grabbed Cloud's shoulder and quickly pushed him into the steel gate. He and Reno ran inside as well, and slammed the gate, locking it. The creatures slammed themselves against it, trying their hardest to kill the five people inside of it.  
"Shinra has been calling them Gigases." Tseng said.

"Gigases?"

"A Gigas is an ancient creature that is believed to be extinct. It's from the time of the ancients. They were Cetra who refused to pass on to the Life Stream. They became Gigases, monstrosities that are only barely alive. Mindless monsters."

"Like your little emo friend Vincent." Reno added.

"Reno!" Tseng snapped at him.

"So these things are Gigases?" Cloud asked.

"No, but they're similar in many ways."

"Whatever, I don't really need to know this. We just need to find a way to get back to Seventh Heaven."

"Trouble." Rude said.

"What?"

"We saw you leave the bar Cloud." Tseng said. "Before they could close the door, they were over run. They're probably already dead."

"No, that's impossible."

"Sorry Cloud, it isn't. the five of us are probably all that is left."


	6. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

The Turks led Cloud up to the top for of the building, formerly the sector 7 inn. They sat inside of it for a few hours, discussing what their plan of action should be. Tseng took charge, and Cloud, seeing as he was with the Turks, decided to stand back while Tseng explained.

"We're going to have to get out of Midgar." Tseng said. Cloud was starting to doubt his leadership ability.

"But what about all of them?" Cloud said, standing up. He walked over to the window, looking out of the window. He saw countless Gigases. "They'll just leave Midgar eventually. We can't let them take over the planet."

"I told you we have orders." Reno said.

Tseng slapped him upside the back of the head. "Reno!"

"What are your orders?" Cloud demanded, suddenly suspicious. He spun toward the team.

Tseng rolled his eyes. "Shinra has teams deployed in Midgar. They are currently carrying out a plan to stop the Gigas outbreak."

"What's the plan Tseng?" Cloud asked. Though his voice was calm, he made it clear that it wasn't a request.

"Strife, I'm not going to tell you." Tseng said. "If you don't like that fact, you can always leave."

Cloud didn't like the idea of being in close proximity to the Turks while not knowing what they had up their sleeves, but he knew that it was better than being with the Gigases. Cloud turned away, walking over to the corner of the room, he sat down with his back against the wall.

"We leave tomorrow." Tseng continued. "The sooner we get out, the better."

==##==

Cloud awoke the next day to an extremely loud bang. He sat up as Tseng and Reno ran back into the room, Rude and Elena were waking up too.

"It's a Galian, we have to move now!" Tseng said. He and Reno looked worried.

"What!" Elena cried in surprise.

"What's a Galian?" Cloud asked.

"We have to leave, come on." Tseng said, going to open the door. Cloud slammed the side of his sword against it.  
"What's a Galian?" Cloud asked again.

"Strife, if you don't move your sword..."  
"You'll what?" Cloud challenged.

"Die! We'll all die if we don't get the hell out of here."

Cloud didn't move.

Tseng sighed. "It's another extinct animal from the time of the Cetra, happy?"

"Then what is it doing here now!"

"Damn it Cloud!" Reno interrupted.

"Reno!" Tseng said.

"No, Tseng!" Reno snapped back. "We haven't gotten report, meaning that the others are dead. Shinra is dead, we're all that are left. Shinra is no more, which means that I can say this." He turned to Cloud. "You know Vincent Valentine? Well, Professor Hojo was the one who got him and trapped him. He experimented on him, he infused Vincent, one of the founding turks, with a materia."

Cloud looked at Tseng, who quickly averted his eyes.

"Shinra thinks it is an accident, but I have to admit the Shinra employees aren't exactly the most straight and narrow people. I think Hojo modified the resurrect materia with the DNA that was infused with Vincent's materia." Reno finished.

Before anyone could say anything else, the door was ripped from it's hinges. A long, slender arm reached in, the hand equal in proportion. It's fingers wrapped around Tseng's throat in a flash, pulling him from the room. Cloud reached for him, but was too late. The remaining Turks ran after Tseng, Cloud followed. They saw Tseng, seemingly unconscious in the hands of the beast. It's evil eyes glaring at them.


	7. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Cloud and the remain Turks watched the Galian beast. The beast in turn, watched them. His eyes darting from face to face. He let go of Tseng, causing him to fall to the floor. He looked at Cloud and made an animalistic noise. Was he laughing? Cloud didn't know, who knew what these things were capable of. Suddenly, a crash from down the stairs caused them to jump. The Gigases were swarming towards them, having broken through the gate.

"Come on!" Reno said, running for the fire ladder. Rude followed him. Cloud looked back towards the Galian, finding him gone. Tseng still lay on the ground.

"We can't leave Tseng!" Elena cried, starting towards him.

Cloud, thinking fast, punched Elena square in the back of the head, causing her to collapse unconscious. Cloud drug Elena to the ladder, tossing her down to Rude. He climbed onto the ladder and was going to descend when the Gigases broke through the door. He quickly slid down the ladder, and the group started down the alley. They heard a thud on the ground behind them, and turned to see a dead Gigas that had lept from the roof.

"Dumb ass." Reno said, smirking. The group ran out into the street, finding themselves face to face with a seemingly endless horde of Gigases.

"um, ideas?" Reno asked, his EMR in his hand.

Cloud stared at the crowd, trying to think of a plan. Just then the crowd opened up as the truck burst through them. The truck skidded to a stop right in front of the group.

"Get in!" Vincent yelled from the drivers seat. Cloud quickly jumped into the passenger seat, while Reno and Rude, who was still holding Elena, climbed into the back. The trucks wheels spun as Vincent floored the gas pedal. He made a quick u-turn and plowed back through the crowd. As they were speeding away, they heard an explosion come from behind them.

"Tseng! You son of a bitch!" Reno yelled. Cloud looked in the mirror, shocked to see the support pillar for sector 7 slums to be collapsing.

"He's carrying out the mission!" Reno informed Cloud. "Shinra wanted us to get rid of the outbreak as fast a possible. They sent teams to the support pillar to crush the slums. The fall would also kill anyone on the top plate."

"But wouldn't the Gigases survive?" Cloud asked.

"No, the resurrect materia, while powerful, is still limited. It can't bring back something that's been totally destroyed."

Cloud watched in silence as the plate came slamming down to the ground behind them, they had barely made it out of sector seven. The kept driving, heading for sector 8.

"Vincent." Cloud said. "We thought you were dead."

"None of us are dead." Vincent replied, his eyes on the road ahead of them. "We were around Aerith's house when the outbreak happened. We're all there."

Cloud felt joy that the team had survived the outbreak.

"Tifa, and the others came to tell us you were in trouble. I came as quick as I could."

"Wait, Tifa's alive?" Cloud asked surprised.

"Yeah, Seventh Heaven was overrun when you went to help the turks, but Barret, thinking quickly, got them out the back door. I've never seen anything quite so interesting as four people riding one motorcycle."

Now Cloud was absolutely ecstatic, not only was the team OK, but so were the others.

"So we're going to sector 8?" Cloud asked.

"Yes, I think that is best. We can decide what to do from there. I think it'd be best to get out of Midgar as fast as possible."

"Yes, but we can't risk the Gigases getting out of Midgar."

"I've already have a plan for that. We have to lock down the exits. Make sure none can get out."

Cloud was impressed, he knew that Vincent had leadership ability, but the fact that he had thought so far ahead was amazing.  
"OK, but for now let's get to Sector 8." Cloud said. He looked ahead of the huge crowd of Gigases in front of them.


	8. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

When they arrived at the house in sector 8, they were lucky to find the area relatively empty. They quickly got out of the truck, and ran to the house.

"It's us, open the door." Vincent said through the door. They heard the sounds of objects being moved around inside. "We've got the door pretty well barricaded." Vincent explained to Cloud.

"Well, tell them to hurry it up." Reno said. "We don't have much time."

Cloud looked toward him, seeing that he was looking a group of Gigases approaching the house.

"We'll be fine." Vincent said, despite that, he had his hand on the handle of his gun. Sure enough, the Gigases soon saw them, and started running at them.

"Oh shit, open the damn door!" Reno practically screamed, pulling out his EMR. Rude placed Elena on the ground, and prepared for the on coming fight. Even Cloud was starting to get nervous. He was reaching for his sword when the door swung open behind them. Cloud quickly reached forward, grabbing Elena's arm, and pulled her inside. The Gigases had reached Reno and Rude, who had began fighting them. Vincent followed Cloud inside. Finally Rude broke away from the fighting and entered the house.

"Just close it, I'll be fine!" Reno yelled, landing a kick upside the head of a Gigas. The group, seeing no other alternative, closed the door. The began piling things back against it, keeping the Gigases out. There was a beating against the door. They heard the truck start outside, and then the engine fade away. Finally, the beating stopped. The Cloud turned around just as Tifa crashed against him. He returned her embrace, happy to see her.

"I didn't think I'd see you again." She said. He sensed in her voice that she was crying.

"I didn't either." He replied, they released each other. "The Turks saw the bar get broken in to. We thought you were all dead."

"Everyone else is up stairs, except me, Yuffie" she pointed to the young girl in the corner, "and Cid" she motioned towards the blond by the stairs.

"OK." Cloud replied. "Then let's get everyone down stairs. We need to decide what to do next."

"Right, Yuffie, go get everyone." Tifa said. The girl went up the stairs.

"I'll go help her." Vincent said, following her.

"Well, I'd be got damn." Cid said. "Didn't expect to ya Cloudo." He walked over to where Cloud and Tifa were standing. "You missed one hell of a show. We'd just stolen the shipment of materia, when the outbreak reached are area. We were fighting are way out when those damned things"

"They're called Gigases." Cloud said.

"Don't interrupt me boy." Cid said. "Now, those... what'd you call them? Guy gases? Whatever. The farts burst into the building and started attacking the guards."

Cloud had to fight to keep in his laughter. Cid was smart, but sometimes he just got it wrong. This was one of those times.

"We thought they were on our side til they started attacking us too. Damn near got us too, cept for Vinny's quick thinking... say do you hear a chainsaw?"


	9. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

"Get back." Cloud yelled as the chainsaw burst through the door behind him. It swooped down, narrowly missing his shoulder.

"It's a Masker!" Elena said, finally waking up. She quickly climbed to her feat.

"A what?" Tifa asked urgently as the saw came through the door again.

"Probably something that Vincent can change into." Cloud said. "Hojo is behind the outbreak."  
"What? I don't understand."

"We'll explain later." Cloud said. "we have to get everyone out of here now."

"It's impossible. Reno took the truck and we've got fifteen people hear."

Suddenly the chainsaw vanished from the door and the sound cut out. Everyone on the first floor went silent, suddenly Barret's voice came from the stairs.

"What the hell is going on down there!"

Cloud looked at the stairs in disgust, and then quickly back at the door. He could see the Gigases gathering through the cuts in the door.

"OK, I think it's time for us to start towards the stairs." Cloud said. The four others agreed and they slowly and silently started towards the stairs. Cloud was about half way when the door burst open.

"Run!" He yelled. They ran for the stairs, Barret was standing at the top of them.

"Get your asses up here!" He yelled, aiming his gun at the bottom of the stairs. Elena, Tifa and Rude went up the stairs as Cid and Cloud stood at the bottom of the stairs trying to beat the creatures back.

"Go boy, I'll be right behind ya." Cid said, spearing a Gigas through the face. Cloud ran up the stairs, turning around when he reached the top. Cid was on the third stair, kicking at the Gigases, who were grabbing at him. Cloud watched as the Gigases grabbed Cid and pulled him down into the crowd.

"Damn Farts!" Cid yelled, stabbing his sword at them. They carried him out of the house, practically pulling him apart.

"Wedge, blow the stairs!" Barret order. He jumped back, pulling Cloud with him. The explosion wasn't much, just enough to collapse the stairs.

"I'd like to see them get up here now." Barret said, satisfied with himself.

Cloud stayed silent, sure the current threat was eliminated, but if one of the other things were to come, and he was sure they would, the missing stairs would so little to stop a Galian... or worse. Did Hojo use that beast that was hidden inside Vincent as well? If he did, could they survive it? Only time could tell.

"Yo spiky!" Barret said. "you feeling all right?"

"Yeah..." Cloud replied. "Just thinking."

"Well don't, we're safe now. Go sleep, I still have leaders work to do." Barret said. "You can use the room at the back of the house." He said, walking down the hallway and entering a room. Cloud decided it would be best to get some sleep, and walked down the hall into the room. Laying down in one of the open beds, he closed his eyes, falling asleep soon after.


	10. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

When Cloud awakened a few hours later, he found Tifa laying next to him. How long had he been asleep? Sunlight shown through a crack in the wall. He lay his head back down, pulling Tifa close to him, when the door burst open.

"Vincent is gone!" Yuffie cried. Cloud quickly got to his feet. Tifa soon after him.

"What do you mean he's gone? Where could he of gone?" Cloud asked.

"I don't know, I've looked everywhere for him and he's not here. You don't think that the Gigases could have gotten him do you?"

"Doubt full, Vincent is too skilled for that. Perhaps he's gone out scouting." Tifa reasoned.

"But why wouldn't of told anybody?" Cloud pointed out. He turned his attention of Yuffie. "Go see if anyone saw him leave. Tifa, double check the house for him, make sure Yuffie didn't miss him by mistake."

Yuffie turned and exited the room, Tifa followed her out. Cloud sat back down on the bed. Why had Vincent left? None of this seemed to make sense, but then he recalled that little seemed to make sense. He was growing tired of all the plots, all the twists. He just wished that it'd all end, and he could live a normal life. He may even get married, considering the person he wanted to be with wanted him. He stood up quickly when the door opened.

"Someone saw him going out one of the windows early this morning." Yuffie said. "When they called out to him, he ignored them."

It would seem more twists are to come, Cloud thought. "Then we go after him, we can't let one of our own be out there alone. Yuffie, go get Tifa and us three will go after him."

Yuffie nodded, and ran off again. Cloud took this time to change his clothes. The two women returned just as he was lacing up his boots.

"Yuffie, which side of the house did he go out of?" Cloud asked her.

"The south side."

"OK, then that's the way we're going. Make sure you both have everything you'll need, once we're out there, we'll have to be on guard at all times. Let's go." Cloud said, walking past them and heading in the direction of the south side of the house. They reached the window only to find Elena and Rude waiting for them.

"So I hear you're going out after the ghoul." Elena said.

"Don't you dare talk about Vincent like that!" Yuffie snapped. Cloud placed his hand on her shoulder to keep her from lashing out.

"You've been spying on us." Cloud said.

"It's one of our skills." Elena said.

"Well, what's your point then?"

"Reno." Rude said.

"What he's trying to say is that we're coming with you, better the chance of all of us looking for the two than if we were to split up." Elena explained.

Cloud was about to tell them no when Rude started climbing out of the window.

"That wasn't a request." Elena said.


	11. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Cloud lead the group as the move through the deserted streets. They had been lucky so far that they had not encountered any of the Gigases. The entire group was jumpy though, at one point a stray cat had knocked of a can, causing Elena to fire at it. They had stayed silent for 10 minutes, listening for traces of Gigases, luckily they heard none. Now, Cloud entered the sector 3 slums, still searching for Reno and Vincent.

"Maybe we should turn back." Yuffie suggested.

"Yeah, every minute we're out here increases the chances of us getting found by the Gigases."

"You didn't have to come with us." Cloud explained.

"Quiet." Rude said.

"Don't tell him to be quiet." Tifa snapped.

"Shut up Tifa!" Cloud said, covering her mouth. "Don't you hear that?"

There was the sound of footsteps. By the sound of them, the owner was injured. They slowly approached the corner that the footsteps were coming from. Cloud peaked around the corner.

"Vincent!" He said shocked. He ran to his friend just as he collapsed. Cloud caught him in his arms. There was a huge hole in his chest. "Vincent, what happened?" Cloud asked urgently.

"He took it." Vincent said weekly. "Hojo took it"

"Took what?" Cloud asked.

"Chaos." Vincent responded weekly, his eyes slowly closed. Cloud felt his body stop.

"Vincent!" Cloud said, shaking him. There was no response.

"He's dead." Came a voice above them. The group looked up, finding Hojo standing above them. "As are you going to be."

Suddenly, a swarm of Gigases started running into the end of the alley way in front of them.

"Run!" Elena screamed, as the group started running for the other end of the alley. Cloud could hear Hojo laughing maniacally behind them as they fled. In front of Cloud, Yuffie tripped on a loose stone. Cloud quickly grabbed her, and tried to help her. The Gigases were almost upon them. Finally, Cloud couldn't wait any longer. He let go of Yuffie, and continued running. Yuffie's screams filled the air as the Gigases reached her. The group exited the alley, slamming a metal gate behind them.

"We don't have much time." Cloud said. The other three were trying to catch their breaths.

"We have to get back to the house." Elena breathed.

"We can't out run them that long, besides, I'm not leading them to the others." Tifa argued.

Suddenly, the truck appeared in the distance. It screeched to a halt next to the group.

"Get in." Yelled Reno. The group quickly piled into the truck, and it sped off down the street. Suddenly, a loud roar filled the air. Cloud turned back, seeing Chaos standing atop a building.

"Drive faster Reno!" He yelled through the window.


	12. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Cloud stood in the back of the truck as it sped through the streets of Midgar. The Gigases all had faded into the distance by now, but Hojo was still in hot pursuit, flying high in the sky behind them.

"Go faster!" Cloud yelled at Reno, who was driving.

"It's on the floor already!" Reno called back to him.

Cloud drew his buster sword, watching as Hojo started his decent. Cloud ducked down just as Chaos reached them. He collided with the truck, causing it to tilt, and then flip. Cloud was thrown from the bed of the truck, flying through the wall of a nearby house. He slowly climbed to his feet, staring at the truck. It was laying on it's roof. He watched as Reno and Rude carried Elena to safety. They disappeared around a corner.

"Tifa." Cloud said, worried. He went to take a step, but pain shot through his body. He looked down, seeing a bone sticking from his leg. He gritted his teeth, and took a step. Once again, pain shot through him, but it didn't stop him. He took another step, and then another. He hobbled over to the truck, bracing himself against it. He looked in through the passenger window. Tifa lay unconscious on the ceiling of the truck. A small puddle was forming under her head. He bent over to pull her out, when he heard a shriek over his head. He looked up, finding Chaos circling him. He pulled the sword out of it's holster on his back. He stared up at Chaos, rage filling him as he looked at the creature. He didn't see Chaos, but Hojo, the source of all this. All the death, and the pain, all the loss. It was all because of this man that was before Cloud. No, not a man. Hojo was more a monster than Chaos was.

"You!" Cloud yelled at him. "This is all your fault!"

Chaos continued to hover over him.

"You couldn't just leave the world be. You couldn't just do something for the good of humanity. You had to make it one of your experiments!"

Chaos let out a beastly roar.

"I've lost so many people, so many of my friends are dead now, and it's all because of you!"

Chaos shot down, speeding at Cloud.

"Fuck you!" Cloud screamed, throwing his buster sword. It spun through the air, flying at the diving beast. Hojo spread his wings, trying to stop himself. The sword hit him, cutting cleanly through him. Hojo fell to the ground, landing in two halves. Cloud watched as the beast before him attempted sadly to flap it's wings, trying to get back up, it's legs kicking. Finally, all movement ceased, all life had left the legendary monster, and the once great scientist that had embodied it. Cloud turned back to the truck, and leaned over. He pulled Tifa from it, cradling her in his arms.

"Tifa." He said, shaking her. She gave him no response. "Tifa." Still, she lay in his arms. He looked down at her hand, at the ring on it. He pulled her close, burying his face into her hair. Tears ran from his eyes.

Around him, Gigases had encircled him. They slowly boxed him in, moving in for the kill. Cloud didn't even resist, didn't even put up a fight. He didn't even feel it.


	13. Epilogue and Afterword

Epilogue

Two days later, Barret succeeded in evacuating all the survivors left in the Sector 8 Gainsborough house. They traveled to Kalm, where the remains of Avalanche reformed into a new organization, along with some of the other survivors. Word of The Truth spread through out the planet, as well as the story they spread. The story of the outbreak was spread far and wide, reaching the ears of everyone. Eventually, the remains of the Shinra Electric Power Company quelled the rumors, and labeled The Truth as a new anti-Shinra terrorist organization. The covered up the Midgar incident as an accident, claiming the event was caused by the explosion of a MAKO reactor, setting off a chain reaction that had killed thousands, even millions. As for the Gigases, they still roam the streets of Midgar, slowly picking away at the few Survivors that are still trapped in the city.

The End

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Afterword

In 1997, my sister's boyfriend purchased a game. And since it was me and my brother's Playstation, I was introduced not only to the world of Final Fantasy, but to what I think may very well be the greatest Video Game ever made. Final Fantasy VII. I was soon sucked into the universe, as are many. The idea for Infestation, was actually meant to be a short one shot. Almost immediately after posting it on Halloween of this year, I got request to continue it. Well, personally I just wanted to see a short Zombie story in the FF7 universe, but I have few fans, and I hold every single one I have in high regard. So I started rewriting, modifying, giving it plot. I am not satisfied with the outcome, as I believe that I was not prepared for it (I had recently gotten the idea for Shadows, which I'm hoping to make my major achievement.) I hope the those of you who asked for this, have enjoyed it, and those who have read it have as well. I had a terribly hard time writing this, but this is where I'm going to make my mistake. **ON MY PAGE, I HAVE STARTED A POLL. DO YOU WANT ME TO WRITE A SEQUAL?** That is up to you, the readers. Thank you for reading my works, and I hope to see more of you in the future, as you will definitely be seeing me.


End file.
